Screen for moving pictures.



J. H. GENTER. SCREEN FOR. MOVING PICTURES.

APPLIOATION FILED JUNE 12, 1912.

1,128,867. Patented Feb. 16, 1915.

17/ A A r Q q E i I ATTORNEYS SCREEN FOR MOVING PICTURES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb! 16, 1915.

Application filed June 12, 1912. Serial No. 703,148.

To all who) it may concern:

Be it known that I, Jncon H. GENTER, a citizen of the United States, anda resident of Newburgh, in the county of Orange and State of New York,have madecertain new and useful Improvements in Screens for MovingPictures, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in screens for receiving andprojecting images such as those of stereopticons or moving picturemachines. and it consists in the constructions herein described andclaimed.

An object of my invention is to provide a screen which is actually madeup of a series of strips, but which appears to be a unitary structurewithout any seams.

A further object of my invention is to provide a screen which will notsubject the eye to strain, glare, or haze.

A further object of my invention is to provide a screen by means ofwhich the projected images may be readily seen without the necessity ofputting out the lights in the house or theater in which the exhibitionis being held.

Other objects and advantages will appear in the following specification,and the novel features of the invention will be particularly pointed outin the appended claims.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which Figurel is a section through a portion of the screen, Fig. 2 is a front viewof a portion of the screen, Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail view of aportion of the screen showing its embossed surface, Fig. 4 is anenlarged section showing the embossed surface, and Fig. 5 is a modifiedform of the device.

In carrying out my invention I provide a suitable body portionconsisting of flexible strips such as those shown at A and B in Fig. 1.These strips are preferably of some flexible fabric, such as canvas, orthe like, although they may be made of tough paper or other suitablematerial. In making the screen the edges of the strips A and B whichabut each other are trued off so that when they meet on the common linea (see Fig. 2) the surfaces register. On the back of the screenorcurtain and overlapping the adjacent ends of the strips A and B is alayer of similar flexible material C.

This may be cemented to the strips A and B by means of cement D, asshown in Fig. 1, or it may be sewed directly to the strips A and B bystitching E, as shown in Fig. 5. It will be understood that one or moreof these joints may be made as the size of a screen warrants. After thestrips A and B have been joined together an exterior filling or coating1* is applied to the screen. The composition of this coating forms thesubject of a co-pending application, Serial Number 703,331, filed June12, 1912. In general it may be stated that it consists of an amalgam ofany suitable metal, such as tin, silver, gold, aluminum, etc., which isheld in suspension by means of a vehicle such as collodion. The coatingor filling F is applied by scraping the same over the front portion ofthe screen to which it will adhere. It will be noted that ,this coatingor filling tends to cover up whatever may be seen of the small linewhich marks the edges of the adjacent strips A and B, so that when thecoating F dries, the result is that the seam is not visible, and theappearance of the screen is that of a unitary structure. This is, ofcourse, of great importance in screens of this type, as where there is aseam it detracts from the picture. After the coating has dried, whichonly takes a few minutes, the screen is passed through an embossingmachine which makes an embossed surface similar to that shown in Figs. 3and 4. It will be understood, of course, that the ridges G, which'areshown in Figs. 3 and 4, are, of course, greatly exaggerated. Theappearance of the screen to most of the audience is that of a perfectlyflat surface, but the embossing of the screen has a tendency to diffusethe light which it reflects, and therefore there will not be the glarewhich results from the reflection of a bright light upon a plainsurface. A screen made in this manner can be manufactured from narrowstrips of material, and is therefore cheaper to manufacture. The hidingof the seam gives the screen the appearance of a single flat surface,and there is not the unsightly appearance of theseam which tends todetract from the picture. The embossing of the surface tends further tohide the seam, and, as stated before, it diffuses the light, eliminatesthe glare, and gives the picture a soft and finished effect whichcandistortion from the angular view. Moreover a screen thus made atclose view gives a depth of perspective which cannot be obtained on theordinary screen, while the picture stands out clearly and does not growdim or blurred when viewed from a short distance.

I claim:-

1. In a screen, a plurality of flexible strips, the edges of said stripsbeing straight and the front and rear surfaces of the strips beingarranged to register, a flexible rein forcing member secured to the backof the screen and arranged to overlap the edges of the abutting strips,a coating or filling on the front side of the screen for hiding theabutting edges of the strips, and auxiliary means for aiding in theconcealment of the edges of the strips and for diffusing the light.

2. In a screen, a I plurality of flexible strips, the edges of saidstrips being straight and the front and rear surfaces of the stripsbeing arranged to register, a flexible reinforcing member secured to theback of the screen and arranged to overlap the edges of the abuttingstrips, and a coating or filling on the front side of the screen forhiding the abutting edges of the strips, the front face of the screenbeing embossed for diffusing the light and for the purpose of aiding inthe concealment of the edges of the strips.

1,12s,se1

3. In a screen for moving pictures, a plurali y of opaque flexiblestrips, the edges of said strips being straight and the front and rearsurfaces of the strips being arranged to register, a flexible fabricreinforcing member secured to the back of adjacent strips and arrangedto overlap the abutting edges, and a reflecting coating or filling onthe front side of the screen for hiding: the abutting edges of thestrips, the front face of the screen being embossed for diffusing thelight and for the edges of the strips.

4. In a screeen for moving pictures, a plurality of opaque flexiblestrips, the edges of said strips being straight and the front and rearsurfaces on one strip being arranged to register with the front and rearsurfaces respectively of the adjacent strips, a flexible fabricreinforcing member secured to the back of adjacent strips and arrangedto overlap the abutting edges, and a reflecting coating or filling onthe front side of the screen for hiding the abutting edges of thestrips, the front face of the screen being embossed with a plurality ofirregular shaped ridges for the purpose of diffusing the light and foraiding in the concealment of the edges of the strips.

' JACOB H. GENTER.

Witnesses CLIFFORD H. BUCK,

JOHN JAY SMITH.

purpose of concealment of the

